The soft drink even developed an advertising campaign about the out-of-work players, starting a “salary cap bottle cap game” to help fans “get through the tough times.”

They didn’t make either Hill or Duncan popular among the rank-and-file members of the players’ union. But it did spark a lot of interest. Slam Magazine.com reports that after the commercials started airing at the end of November during the 1998-99 lockout, more than 350,000 calls were placed to the “1-800-TALL-MEN” phone line in the first two weeks that was part of the commercials.

Slam provided a quote from the Detroit Free Press from an unidentified player about the initial resistance from most players about the involvement of Duncan and Hill in the old campaign.

“They’re going to be out to get him,” he said, “and the four guys I talked to really meant it. Players with a lot to lose sacrificed a lot, and the sentiment is that the league is looking out for those two (Hill and Duncan) more than most. They’re going to take some shots.”

There were no reprisals for either player after the lockout was settled.

But it will be interesting if any current players step apart from the rest of the players to expand their commercial endorsement opportunities during the lockout.